


A Photographic Memory

by tobiohdamn



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: KageHina - Freeform, M/M, Photography AU, otherwise kagehina centric, some minor side relationships
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-19
Updated: 2016-05-19
Packaged: 2018-06-09 09:18:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,412
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6900160
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tobiohdamn/pseuds/tobiohdamn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kageyama Tobio: An aspiring photographer working part time odd-jobs in order to pay the rent each month, has been stuck in a rut for a while now. He's taken pictures of practically everything; the trees, the skyline, the train that speeds through the subway every morning, all of them have a corresponding image to match. He thinks he's finally lost his touch.  </p>
<p>That is, until he meets a certain red-headed musician and his acoustic guitar.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Photographic Memory

**Author's Note:**

> Ohhh fun fun fun-- hello there! So to start off, this is my first every haikyuu!! fic of any kind. I thought of this fic on the fly because I knew I wanted to do an au of some kind, soooooo here it is! I hope you like, please leave any ideas/thoughts in the comments and I promise I'll read them, I absolutely adore reader input. Also depending on the content of later chapters, the rating may change as well.
> 
> If you want to message me anything in particular, I'm on tumblr at tobiohdamn

It was 5 in the morning. 

Normally, waking up at this time wouldn't be that big of a deal. It was a decent hour, though there wasn't much bustle or sound around the top level of his dingy apartment, and everything was as it usually was when the day had merely just begun. It really wouldn't have been that big of a deal.  

If, of course, he had been asleep until then. 

Kageyama Tobio stared at the ceiling with half lidded eyes, contemplating how he'd even managed to stay up so long without getting out of his bed and doing something at least remotely productive. Between those hours, there wasn't much any person could do regardless, but for _12_ _hours_ to have gone by, he didn't understand how he had been awake without nodding off once. Air left his lungs in a slow sigh, hand reaching up to rake through his inky black hair. He peered over at the bedside desk, placed right below the only window in the room.  

There sat his camera, reflecting the faint glow of morning on it's lens, scattered photographs settled in a variety of different sorts underneath it, looking like they hadn't been touched in the last week or so. It wasn't that they weren't important, uncared for, useless; Kageyama only felt that the kinds of photos he'd been taking were summed up in one word-- overdone. None of the images stood out nearly as well as they were supposed to. It was difficult to come up with any reason to keep himself motivated nowadays, especially when the photographs were nothing special. Nothing unique.  

Kageyama's head swam. Why couldn't they be what he _wanted_ them to be?  

The muffled buzzing of the phone beneath his pillow broke the silent daze that washed over him. It was probably for the best; if he used any more of his time wasting thoughts about circumstances that couldn't be changed, he would drive himself insane. Besides, when it was this early, messages only ever came from one person. Kageyama pried a hand under the pillow and searched for the cell. When his fingers found the single jagged crack across the screen, he pulled it out of its place, and the message he found there was as simple as he'd thought. 

_Msg_ _:_ _Sugawara_    
 _Hey! Meet me for coffee at 8?_  

Kageyama groaned. The idea was nice by itself, but there was always a reason that Sugawara wanted to go out so early, and it wasn't for the coffee. Recently he'd taken to meeting up as a way for Kageyama to vent his frustrations, and it was a nice feeling at first. When Sugawara began asking questions though, _personal_ questions, Kageyama came up with any lie he could muster to avoid answering. Thinking back on their childhood days spent as friends, there wasn't anything surprising about the way the other acted. For the concerns Kageyama had, there was always a safer place in Sugawara. 

Cobalt eyes flicked over the time displayed at the edge of the screen.  

5:10  

He shoved his phone back in place under the pillow and attempted to keep his eyes shut. 

When 8 rolled around, Kageyama was already seated at a round table inside of a café that was well known around the city for housing the best cups of coffee anyone could taste. The sky was dim with looming rain clouds, grey and dreary as he took the seat nearest the window, blankly watching the passerbys with his chin resting in his hand. Suga had yet to show up, though the raven didn't blame him. There was always a reason for everything the male did. This time was no exception.  

A chime echoed through the air and made it's way to Kageyama's ears. He shifted his gaze, slowly at first, before pulling through to land on a head of white-grey hair. It looked well placed, like always, a few strands seeming to stick out carelessly. Suga's deep brown eyes had locked with that of the cashier's, but the lighthearted look of them could still be felt across the room, and the man at the register must have figured that out by now; he was busy grinning like an idiot, not bothering to look away as he fumbled with the order he was penning down. 

It occurred to Kageyama then that Suga was a fairly attractive man, had been for as long as he had known him. The tan cardigan bunched a tad at his shoulders, covering up the white button-down shirt beneath it. The dark blue of his jeans was subtle, not standing out but somehow perfectly pulling together the outfit as a whole. Kageyama wasn't an expert on fashion, but the way that Sugawara Koushi dressed would probably put anyone to shame, no doubt about it. Although, maybe it wasn't so surprising after all, considering his warm personality. Compared to his own outfit, a simple black v-neck, the dark grey of his pants coupled with ratty sneakers (he never found the time to fix the small holes at the sides), Suga didn't have to try too hard. 

Staring back out of the large window, Kageyama took note of the people passing across the street, some holding hands while others carried numerous amounts of bags from what he could only assume were shopping sprees with friends, the idea causing his nose to crinkle in mild distaste. He wasn't in any position to judge, though. Friends were something that was hard to come upon living a life like his, his attitude often described as overbearing and often times flat out depressing. Or so he'd heard. Even then, Kageyama wasn't sure what to believe, and he didn't particularly care; analyzing his own personality never seemed to be too great of an issue. It didn't need to be solved like a math equation. 

It wasn't until a pair of new looking black boots tugged at his vision from the corner of his eye that he even realized Suga was standing before him, already outstretched hand holding what Kageyama assumed was his cup. Taking it carefully from his hold, he watched him sit at the opposite end of the table, his elbows propping themselves up as he took a sip of his drink. He set it down a few moments after and the man grinned broadly.  

"So, how have you been? Tell me what you've been up to for the past few weeks."  

Suga was enthusiastic. Typical.  

Kageyama shifted, uneasy at the sudden approach of the topic because he knew damn well that Suga understood what had been going on, and the situation had only gotten worse since the last time they spoke, two weeks before now. The raven took a sip of his drink, ignoring the burn across the tip of his tongue before he gave his response.  

"The same as always. Trying, failing. Trying again, failing again. See a pattern yet?"  

Suga's smile fell to a frown, his brows furrowing.  

"You really haven't gotten any better, have you." 

Now _that_ was a funny way of wording it. _Better_. If Kageyama Tobio was doing any better then there would be no point in him coming out to talk. If he was doing any better then Suga wouldn't have taken the time to text, the time to meet him, the time to ask about what the raven's problems were. No, he wasn't doing any better. He was the farthest from better that he had ever been before. 

"I'm done with it. No point in photography anymore if I can't get what I'm looking for." Kageyama glared down into the reflection cast by his coffee, an angry, lost duplicate glaring right back. He didn't bother paying attention to the slight intake of air, the slow sigh soon after coming from his only friend.  

"What _are_ you looking for, then? The Kageyama I know doesn't just give up on his dreams. Don't you think all that effort you put in would be wasted if you don't keep trying?" 

_Don't you think telling me this all over again w_ _ould_ _be wasting time?_ he thought, but he knew better then to speak it out loud. He didn't know how to respond to that exactly. It was one thing giving up on a dream, another to have nothing to fall back on. Chasing a dream that far took you somewhere, gave you opportunities once they've been achieved, but for Kageyama, the amateur, what could he do differently now that he hadn't been doing his entire life? How could he ever hope to stumble upon success with his hard work, if hard work led up to sitting in a quiet coffee shop, talking to another about his problems? He kept his mouth shut, biting the inside of his cheek to keep himself preoccupied. When it seemed the other had had enough of the silence, Suga spoke up, voice leveled and calm. Kageyama could practically hear the grin on his face.  

"Do you remember when we were kids," he started, and Kageyama had already begun to lean back into his chair, gaze sent to focus out of the window once more, " and you were playing with your mom's old polaroid camera? You shoved it in my face and took my picture; you nearly blinded me, you know."  

He did remember. The lighthearted giggles of children messing with things they knew they shouldn't have echoed in his thoughts, memories that seemed like ghosts seen through fog. He remembered how green the grass of his parents' front lawn was, how the smell of a freshly cooked meal penetrated the air after a day of fun and play. Kageyama remembered, but he wasn't entirely sure what it had to do with his current problem. Without tearing his eyes from the glass before him, his voice came quiet and questioning. "What's the point?" There was silence for a moment, and with a loud skidding of chair legs against hardwood, his vision snapped back to the male.  

He had pulled himself forward, a kind of expression on his face that mixed with frustration and...disappointment. Or maybe that was sadness, and Kageyama honestly couldn't tell the difference.  

" _The point is_ , I'm worried about you. There has to be a little bit of that boy inside of you, right? Always excited, happy. And from the moment you pushed down that button, from the moment you saw that flash go off...from that moment, you decided who you were going to be. What you wanted to do." He paused, his eyes cast downward to stare into the thick black depths of his coffee, brows knit tightly. Suga let out another sigh, with one fluid motion lifted his gaze to trap Kageyama's own with a new look of determination. "You may not see it, but I know for a fact that he's still in there somewhere, Kageyama. Don't give up on him. Please."  

With his eyes glued to the soft hues that stared back at him, it was hard not to simply nod and get it out of the way. It was times like these that Kageyama felt the most unease, and if carrying the heavy burden of a failed career, a failed dream, wasn't enough, he had to withstand the weight of attention. He had to withstand that fact that if he truly wanted to push through the obstacles that stood in his way, he would have to speak. Under that gaze it was almost hard to breathe when his companion was expecting some kind of lengthy answer about how he was going to keep trying. But Kageyama had none of it. He just stared straight back, unblinking. Seconds ticked by, minutes maybe, before Suga shut his eyes and drew back, dragging the cup with him as he stood. The new expression Kageyama saw was calm, relaxed, the smallest hint of a smile playing across his lips. He watched him carefully.  

"If you decide you want to talk more, you know how to get a hold of me. Until then, maybe you should go home and get some rest. I'll be seeing you." 

Just like that, he was out of the front door, Kageyama's fixed look following him through the window until he fully disappeared between the sudden flood of people, leaving the amateur to boil in his thoughts, wondering why, exactly, he had gotten out of bed that morning. At this point, he could only blame himself. Standing from his chair, Kageyama took the coffee in hand and downed it, throwing the cup in a trash bin on the way out of the café. There was only one thing to do in a situation like this, and he wasn't going to pass up a chance to shut off his thoughts.  

It was time to drink the sorrows away.  

If the bar he had been standing in for about 25 minutes wasn't, in fact, a bar, then he would be physically shoving the already drunken men to the floor. Of course, being a public establishment, he definitely wasn't about to pull it off no matter how angry he was, but that didn't exactly stop him from thinking about it. Better to keep his mind on things that were trivial then let it wander to the thoughts he'd been having all day long. As much as he appreciated Suga's help at the café, it hadn't done much to drive away his own insecurities, so drinking was his best option. That was, if he could get to the bartenders. Kageyama didn't know if he could handle one disappointment after the other.  

By the 35 minute mark, the raven let out a sigh of relief, slouching forward over the table with a few bills already being offered. "Listen...I don't care what it is, just get me something strong." The bartender stared at him for a moment, looking a bit stoic before letting loose a grin. His dark hair was cut short, and Kageyama looked him over, sure that underneath the get up of a slimming black suit and tie, there were definitely muscles present.  

"It's been a rough day, huh?"  

Kageyama was brought back from his thoughts, looking up to the bartender in question.  

"I wouldn't call it that." _More like a rough month_. 

The man, probably older than he was, softened his smile, and Kageyama thought that it looked almost as sincere as Suga's, if not a little more rugged. Regardless, it looked like his comment wasn't shrugged off. The man stared at him a bit more, analyzing the response he was given before chiming in once more while he turned around to prepare the drink that was ordered. "First time here? We don't get a lot of newcomers to tell you the truth. Sorry if the line was a hassle at all," he turned around, pushing a mug out to Kageyama, who stopped it from sliding with his palm, "first come first serve, you know."  

Kageyama wrapped his fingers around his drink, lifting it to his lips as he sipped and let the cool liquid fall over his tongue. The taste was strong, and he was appreciative that this bartender had taken it to heart when he told him to give the strongest that he had. "Thanks, um..." 

"Sawamura. Sawamura Daichi. It's nice to meet you." The man, Sawamura, withdrew his hand from the top of the counter and held it out for Kageyama, who took it in his own. 

"Kageyama Tobio." 

"Well Kageyama, looks like you better find a seat. The show's about to start." 

_Show?_  

He didn't think that a bar like the one he was in would be the type to hold live performances of any kind, and that was planted in his head before he knew that they only ever received regulars. If newbies were uncommon, then how come the show's didn't bring in any new customers? There had to be something internal going on, something that the people new about, perhaps. Maybe it had something to do with the people they picked to perform, maybe they weren't that good at it? Maybe-- 

Kageyama's mind grew silent, void of thought for the first time in what felt like forever as the sound of a strumming guitar rang through the air, the vibrations of the strings splitting the atmosphere. The music ceased the muttering of a few patrons, hushed whispers being drowned by the tone that played. He didn't really know what he was expecting, besides getting incredibly drunk, but it hadn't been this, and it hadn't been anything peaceful. It hadn't been anything that was now drawing him in, forward, walking past the people that stood and watched, who didn't seem to mind that they were being pushed by the arm to make room. Once he stood at the front, his brain began to shroud the previous issues, the thoughts that had been plaguing him. 

The male that sat on the stool in front of the microphone was hunched over a guitar, auburn in color. It matched with the red-orange of his unruly hair, and on closer inspection a part of it was pulled up in the back, a small ponytail that he only assumed was used to try and tame the locks. His eyes were a deep brown, amber even, and as they cast down at the guitar being strum, it almost looked like they were burning. He wore a cardigan that looked vaguely familiar to Suga's, the sleeves pushed up around his elbows, covering a black and white striped t-shirt that went well with the black of his pants and the sneakers he wore. There was one other noticeable thing about him, and it was probably the necklace that settled over his chest. It was hard to tell from so far away, but it had caught his attention instantly, and while he didn't exactly know why, Kageyama knew that there was a reason for it; a small, circular sunflower, silver plated and etched into, and a bird with open wings, curling itself around the middle. It's wings created two petals. 

It was the first time in forever that Kageyama cursed himself for leaving his camera behind. His hands fumbled in his pocket for only a second until he pulled out his phone and dragged his fingers across the screen to open up it's photo app. Once he'd got it ready, the amateur steadied himself, waited and breathed, then... 

The subtle flash on his screen was more than enough confirmation to know that the photo had been taken. It was real and existing, and he had taken it, despite the pressure he had felt over the past weeks, all of the self -torture. His hands tightened around the phone as he locked it and guided it back to his pocket, letting the soft music drain him of the sorrow, the ideas and thoughts on giving it up. His dream, the only thing that _mattered_ to him, wasn't lost anymore, in the very least there was a spark of it remaining. It was there, and it was floating in front of him, waiting for him to reach out and grab it with both hands. All he had to do was continue. 

When the music had finally come to a close, the sound of applause ringing in his ears, Kageyama escaped the bar and sped his way home, pulling out his phone to check the picture. Once, twice, four times, eight times. Everything from the lighting to the glow of red and orange hues. It was perfect, exactly what he had been searching for, looking for this entire time. As he eyed over the image, he caught the glint of the sunflower necklace against the solid black of his shirt. Blurry. The intricate details that garnered his attention were not visible in the picture on his phone, and it was because of that error that he couldn't call this his perfect picture.  

Once Kageyama had made it to his apartment, he threw off his shoes and immediately got ready for bed, settling under the sheets before switching his lights off. The only glow that illuminated the walls now was the shine from his phone's screen, the image bright and wonderful, and Kageyama felt like he'd captured the very song he had heard that night in a still frame. It wasn't perfect, but he would get there, even if he had to search for it.  

Kageyama would get his perfect photograph. 

**Author's Note:**

> I'm really excited for this you guys. Reeeeeeeally excited-- 
> 
> Anywho if you want to know what song our precious little red-head was playing, it's an acoustic version of Billy Joel's And So it Goes, covered by Paweł Węgier~


End file.
